Homeowner searches for answers after making puzzling discovery in driveway: 'Marks indicating it was thrown'

Waste is not a new problem; it has been a persistent challenge throughout history.

However, the scale of modern waste has reached alarming levels, posing significant threats to both our environment and quality of life.

Among the many recent contributors to this growing crisis, disposable vapes stand out as a modern invention generating an especially concerning amount of waste.

A Reddit user posted in the subreddit r/whatisthisthing seeking help to identify a small plastic object which they discovered in their driveway in Orlando, Florida.

The original poster detailed the waste item, saying the "bottom of housing has marks indicating it was thrown and landed on concrete."

Quickly, fellow Redditors were able to identify the object as a component of a vape device.

According to the U.S. PIRG Education Fund, 4.5 disposable vapes were discarded every second in the United States in 2023.

To put this staggering figure into perspective, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention offered a striking visual: if you lined up all the disposable vapes sold in the U.S. over the course of 2023, they would stretch approximately 8,772 miles, enough to span the entire contiguous United States three times.

Unfortunately, with minimal standardized recycling programs for disposable vapes, most consumers simply throw them away, contributing further to the growing waste problem.

Disposable vapes directly impact communities. Littered on streets and sidewalks, they're not only unsightly but can also cause everyday hazards like flat tires. Meanwhile, the lithium batteries they contain present a fire risk, and they can also leach harmful chemicals into the soil or water sources.

What confuses you most about recycling protocol? Which materials I can recycle 📦 How clean the material needs to be 🧼 What the plastic numbers mean ♻️ Nothing at all 😇 Click your choice to see results and speak your mind.

Beyond the clutter, vaping poses serious health risks to users. While these human impacts take center stage, the environmental damage, harm to wildlife, potential for microplastics, and the planet-heating emissions from vape production remain troubling, though less visible, consequences of this growing crisis.

In the comment section of the Reddit post, users speculated about the mysterious object.

One suggested it might be a "backlight for a bike and a non-fitting battery in a homemade attachment."

However, others quickly and confidently identified it as part of a vape device, with one commenter plainly stating, "it's literally a Raz vape."

Join our free newsletter for easy tips to save more and waste less, and don't miss this cool list of easy ways to help yourself while helping the planet.